In this video, I rank each Klassic Mortal Kombat Ninja on a tier list from S through D. This covers only the human palette swaps and not any female or cyber ninjas.
Here is the complete list of Klassic Ninjas in this Mortal Kombat Tier List:
Scorpion
Sub-Zero
Reptile
Noob Saibot
Smoke
Ermac
Rain
Chameleon
Tremor
Music Credit: @eurke
Video Credits: @VGSuite @XFactor1111 @Lawrence237 @mortalkombat
Sources for Research: Mortal Kombat Wiki, Wikipedia, Mortal Kombat Online, GameFAQs, Reddit
0:00 Intro
2:06 Scorpion
4:17 Sub-Zero
6:57 Reptile
9:47 Smoke
12:35 Noob Saibot
15:14 Ermac
17:52 Rain
21:13 Chameleon
23:25 Tremor
25:32 Closing Remarks/Outro
#mortalkombat #ninjas #tierlist #scorpion #subzero #ermac #noobsaibot #smoke #reptile #tremor #rain #chameleon
Drop your tier list rankings below ⬇️⬇️
What do you think of Kuai Liang being Scorpion in M1K?
@@EnigmaticVayne I'm neutral on it. I love Kuai Liang and Scorpion separately and it's cool to see a new spin on Scorpion.
@@FAiRWAYx I don't think this is a new spin on Scorpion. It's just putting Kuai Liang in Scorpion's costume and giving him his wife. I enjoy all the fresh takes in M1K with my favorite being Mileena and Kitana are actually sisters. But Scorpion/Hanzo is my favorite character in all video games, so the change really killed the game for me.
@@EnigmaticVayneHanzo was Scorpion forever, so it’s interesting to see a different character there.
@@EnigmaticVayneExactly
"Reptile snuck his way into S Tier" Seems fitting.
😂
Funny when you consider he's the worst playable character in MK2.
I believe Reptile is the first hidden character in fighting game history not just MK
You might be correct
there are hidden characters all around you.
You are correct sir
I think Reptile is more of an A tier character while he has potential he is always that character who you fight every now and then to make the chapters longer.
@@thatonerandomnerd3275 not wrong
Not enough gameplay on Noob honestly. The dude is chillingly beautifully designed. He deserves more screen time for sure.
But noob is sub zero
Reptile is ma boi since 1995 when I saw that iconic fight in the movie. Everything in his human appearance from the statue till the end of the fight was gorgeous! That fight impacted me so much that I main him almost in every game. Reptile and Liu are my favourite chars.
Best fight ever!!
Same bro. Hes my fav... especially as green was my fav color.
To date thats the best fight scene in an MK live action or series movie.. liu kang vs reptile mk 95 movie nothing beats ita
Please do a tier video of all female ninjas! -Kitana 💙 -Mileena 🩷 -Jade 💚 -Tanya 💛 -Skarlet ❤️ -Frost 🩵 -Khameleon 🩶 I personally consider Tanya a ninja despite never wearing a ninja mask since Khameleon did have Tanya's Surging Blast move in MK: Armageddon.
👀
Female ninjas suck
Tanya wears a mask in Mileena's ending in Mortal Kombat 1
I already did my personal tier list for these seven above! What do you think? Imho polite criticism is more than welcome, just as long as we can keep civil conversation about it...
Tanya's mk4 design was based off of the Female Ninja design and in the mobile game she is considered a female ninja as she was featured in the Female Ninja pack for Women's day!
Noob Saibot was always so cool to me. I first saw him in Mortal Kombat Trilogy and I always liked how his sprite is a blank silhouette of a ninja. I also like how he has a clone
Scorpion and Sub Zero are iconic. I thoroughly enjoyed Reptile. I love how they creatively expanded upon Ermac.
Fair points all around!
Fr his design in MKX is definitely one of my top 5 designs in MK history.
Sub-Zero's been my boi since 92' ( I know there's 2 Sub-Zeros but whatever lol) and Reptile is a close second, I'd probably put Ermac as my third just because red is my favorite color, I'm terrible with him though. Noob Saibot gets a honorable mention because his name is the most fun to say.
Love them all! Just wish they got the story development they deserve.
Noob only gets an honorable mention because of his name and not because he's Bi-Han?
@@RabblesTheBinxPretty sure I was about 9 Busch Ices (Ice beer, a Sub Zero fan till the end) when I typed that. But yeah, I guess that's why I like Noob too, it's so hard to keep up with Boon's 30 years of wacky lore at times lol.
I need that mk 9 smoke skin back tho so underrated🔥
Facts!
Although I agree with you ranking for smoke, I love his mk1 design. It’s probably my personal favorite.
I don't like the default mask but his alternate costumes are fine.
@@FAiRWAYx I hope we can get his 'Order of Darkness' skin soon, it's his best skin in MK1.
@@tekkencentre Just looked that up and that skin is fire
This was fantastic. Well done. I agree on your S tier selections. I love Noob Saibot but the dev team didn’t show him enough love.
Noob saibot deserves S tier
Noob saibot deserves S tier
i agree with your ermac take; so much potential with character design but i really didn’t like the whole mummy aesthetic. i wish they would have stuck with the ninja base aesthetic with some additional green flare. great video!
Thank you for the kind words!
Ermac, because he has several warrior spirits within him, can possess an arsenal of fighting techniques.
Great video. I miss a wind ninja, the only element missing. But since we have Fujin, I think it is very unlikely we'll get one
My Top 3 Color Choices For Palette Swapped Ninjas: 1. Orange 2. White 3. Pink
What names would give them?
Hahaha
@@FAiRWAYx Orange: Duncan Hellfire Pink: Pinkshi
@@FAiRWAYx tremor was supposed to be the orange one, but if we want to create new: Orange: takeda, his a fusion of yellow scorpion and kenshi, who originally trained under red ermac, so he is orange; White: khrome, metal; Pink: Floyd, wind power; just like purple rain is a prince, pink floyd.
@@benetnasch1774 Khromeeeee
Wow im surprised you used my bad MK Special Forces gameplay for Tremor, lmao, but Its really cool to see that and seeing this Tier List of the ninjas of Mortal Kombat, with alot of it I would tend to agree with, very cool video indeed!
Hey! Thanks so much for being cool with me using it. I tried to play through to get to that point in the game but it was so unenjoyable. I appreciate the kind words as well!
@@FAiRWAYx You're so welcome man! and yeah thats understandable, hahaha!
@@Lawrence237got $10? In hungry
Great Video 👏
I definitely like your list
Very great tier list 🫡
Thank you
👌🏾💯🔥 perfect tier list
Thx!
Awesome list dude 😊
Thanks! 😁
Great ranking!
Thanks!
I love the look of reptile and smoke in mk1. They finally gave reptile a good human look. Not a fan of smokes mask but love the karambit ❤
As I was one of the best UMK3 players on xbox, I can personally say the community list is 100% spot on. All the S tier ninja were some of the best overall on UMK3 and MK trilogy 🔥🔥 That Ermac juggle use to go crazy😮💨
Good rankings
Needs more views. This was really well done.
I'm glad you enjoyed it!
@@FAiRWAYx Absolutely loved it. Calm voiceover, informative, concise criteria and agreeable results. I could listen to you all day lol
@@erregete I really appreciate the kind words! You keep watching and I’ll keep making them!
In UMK3 with Rain and Noob Saibot I did so many flawless victories. Their combos were so long and destructive and their tricks could give you so much control. Fighting monsters.
Honestly, i completely agree with all of your rankings. Tremor is probably my favorite of the lesser known Ninja's. Are you going to do a video on the female Ninja's at some point?
Yes, eventually. It took me a loooong time to put this together, but it's definitely on the list.
Ninja with earth powers is such a simple yet amazing idea
Rain's roundhouse kick was my favorite kick lol
That thing was deadly on Trilogy & MK9
Noob is my favourite, even more so with the addition of the Batman Who Laughs skin in MK11, absolutely goated
That first reptile encounter was so brutal, I encountered him by accident while learning the fatalities. I never beat him anytime after I learned about him 😅
Solid tier list it's how I would rank them to be honest
🤝
Having play mortal Kombat and fighting games in general for the last 30 years I agree with this tier list 💯
Love this!
I have to hand it to you, you broke it down truly. It's not just a popularity contest. You articulated your points well and I respect that.
@@whitead25 Thanks a lot 😀
I always played as sub zero or kung lao, Freezing and throwing your hat are such troll attacks. I love it.
I don't have a tier list but my top 3 strongest has to be scorpion and noob as they're basically undying and then sub zero cuz how do you fight someone that freezes or slows you down?
Music name during the presentation of Chameleon? :)
Video was great, the tier list … couldn’t agree more 👍💪
Im a Rain lover and i totally agree on the chart. I forgot about Chameleon so often
Most do, and I feel he has so much potential
Havent finished the gideo yet and i am at the noob saiboy part and i am startinh ti think that people want every ninja in s tier
Rank the shotos from SF next!
Ermac is at least A tier to me because his story is actually quite deep, a legion of souls conflicted yet trapped together by sorcery in one vessel. He's also been good and bad depending on timeline which is neat. His powers are also awesome and i must disagree with his finishers not being memorable. His 3d fatalities, MK9 and MKX fatals are sweet. His MKX fatalities are insanely cool and disturbing.
Fair points all around! MK1 knocked him down quite a bit for me, but I can definitely agree that him flipping between bad and good makes him more complex than the others. Inner Workings is a great fatality looking back on it!
@@FAiRWAYx I liked his MK 1 story better than his second timeline where stays loyal to outworld blindly personally. His first timeline and current I like better personally, but to each his own! Cool video though I don't see many ninja tier lists seems half of them most fans love a lot.
@@MKF30 yeah I do love them all in a different way, but wish some had more to offer the overall story.
@@FAiRWAYx Yeah they can all do more but sadly aren't utilized the best sometimes outside of Scorpion and Sub-Zero. Especially Noob-Saibot, hea always built up this badass but is ultimately fodder the worst out of all of them. He's rumored to be DLC in MK1 at some point so if he returns im curious what they do with him and if he'll be Bi Han again or not in this new timeline
10:17 wasnt smoke stage the one with a hidden stage fatality?, the one that you get launched through the portal on the background
I agree with your tier list as would be mine. But I was a teen when mk 1 was released in 92.
I hate how the ninjas are slowly being under used as the games go on
Me too 🙁
Yea they waste slots on characters that have nothing to do with mk AT ALL
@@deauxboysteeze8590 yep. Every story mode is just abt Liu Kang, Raiden, Kung Lao and some random villain Ed Boon chooses out of a hat before they start development
@@iemv8900 im talking characters like peace maker and robocop
Right they were the main staple of the games.
I’m such a sucker for the UMK3 ninja uniforms. Color swap them all you want, that costume is top top tier.
I really would be happy to have chameleon as my favorite, a fusion of all ninjas, plus I remember akuma vs chameleon, I know they didn't give chameleon the best gameplay, but if they base his gameplay to how he fought in akuma vs chameleon, he'd be awesome, also I like how misterious his story is, he's been there ever since mk1 liu kang victory against shang tsung, waiting for his moment
Chameleon has potential to be S tier
Mortal Kombat should offer a create a player ninja option where you can give them the look and move set you want. Armageddon had it in create a fighter but has not been expanded up on to my knowledge in any other game.
Can you do a cyber ninja tier list please?
Tremor is my favorite mk character because he was the first character I ever played I MKX my first MK game
Reptile has always been and always will be my favorite MK character. Followed closesly by Baraka, Mileena, and Goro 😍💚
I called the brown classic ninja in the thumbnail “poop” because I didn’t realize Tremor was officially part of the whole Ninja thing
"I don't think Smoke has enough substance" Ahahahaha!
😂
This is a great video the Ninjas in MK are as Iconic as American apple pie. There is someone who wants to put anyone of these in S tier.
Very true
More of this please
🤝
Good u read my mind
The mk3 subzero design is one of the best and my favorite
Wow I thought I was gonna get triggered when one of my favorite ninjas got ranked too low but I couldn’t agree more with this entire list. Solid reasoning & you love the klassic ninja costumes just as much as I do it seems like. Chameleon is the only ranking I don’t agree with since he is probably my favorite ninja of all time. I’m not even mad though because you explained how backstory is more important to you. Normally I would agree, but not for fighting games. I prioritize how cool the character looks, their moveset, style, etc. Basically all the physical aspects. Story isn’t that important to me since I usually only play fighting games to beat up my friends. I couldn’t tell you how much I loved being able to be a ninja that had the moves of all the others, how could anyone not like that? I can acknowledge that his MKT design isn’t kinda lazy for just being a more transparent version of all the ninjas but literally every other ninja was just a different color of the same design of each other up until MKDA. I don’t have a problem with his Armageddon design and think it’s pretty cool actually how his colors change to whatever ninja’s move he uses. For those reasons, I would have Chameleon be s tier (maybe A at the lowest) but I completely understand why you put him low when you include his backstory (or lack thereof really)
is* kinda lazy I meant
Is Liu Kang considered a Ninja? Along with the other female ninjas as Mileena, Kitana, Jade, Skarlet etc..
No way you put Ermac on B tier lol dude is A tier 100%
We need another MK game where all ninjas are playable. Yes, including Tremor and Chameleon.
Agreed
As long as they don’t nerf Chameleon
Only Scorpion and Noob Saibot must be in S tier
Subzero too
Chameleon should get a story in mk1 dlc, as Syzoth brother. He has a unique look. Also Tremor needs to be a main roster character in some game, he's way to good to be just a kameo or dlc with no backstory And i would consider Erron Black and Takeda kind of new ninjas too since they wear a ninja mask.
"ultimate" ninja list... ignoring a good number of ninjas? BRILLIANT!
Noob was soo dark that I couldn't even see him in the list
sub zero with suspenders is best outfit. looks like the coldest
Ahhhh noob cybot, i still have ptsd from trying to unlock him. Im an only child so video games were life for me. Command & Conquer on PC was my main video game. I have the whole collextion. CnC 1&2/ Tiberian Sun/w the expanion pack. Then red alert 1& 2 then Red Alert w Yuris revenge
I feel that they just did pallet swaps for Scorpion and Sub-Zero, gave them names and just said "Let's see what happens" to develop them
i agree with your list... They should have a ninja based game with male and female characters
I agree with your list.
Sub zero,scorpion,smoke,noob saibot, rain,ermac,reptile, the only characters i care about literally never cared about the other characters
Really? Not even Jax and Johnny Cage?
@@RabblesTheBinx nope it's always been the ninjas for me. Never liked cage or lu Kang,Sonya Jax Kung lou barraka raiden shao khan
@@ranware907115 year old me likes me some Milena. I would... without the mask... even if it meant ending up supper Still would
Smoke looks so cool in armageddon tho
My faviorate is scorpion and subzero but I would prefer scorion as he is stronger what do u think ?
Tough choice! They’re both very strong
@@FAiRWAYx can u pick one
@@Shanudaar23 probably Scorpion
Reptile is awesome, hope returns.
Rain is sort of in the arcade version of UMK3, but it's just his sprite since he's a fake secret character meant to encourage people to pump more quarters into the game in the vain effort to find him. I like Chameleon despite the lack of story, so I'd rank him A-/B+. It might have already been mentioned, but what about Reiko? His MK4 model was based on Noob's who he replaced after the prototype version.
Hard agree on not liking reptile being purely lizardman.
The lizard designs just always looked so stupid. I’ve always wanted him to come back as a ninja for so long.
Smoke is definitely S tier
you can find Rain in Ultimate mortal kombat 3 cup edition.
the slander against mk3 sub is insane
Doesn't reiko count?
I wish Tremor was playable in more games he’s such an interesting character that technically has 3 different powers and his designs go pretty hard
He needs more development for sure
Reptile deff should NOT be S tier....MK1 made his character awesome but besides that hes been downhill since after mk3 and that reason alone is enough to put him in C rank at best. Smoke is most deff S tier though. Theres a reason fans have been askijg for him since MK9
Sub-Zero + Scorpion= Fire 🔥 & Ice ❄️ ❄️
Me personally I always thought Reptile too be a B TIER Ninja because he was a jobber in the Midway games yeah he was cool looking but never wins fights and was just punching bag for the heros but great video bro
I agree, but I think he is just so important despite getting dumped on in the story. Thank you for the kind words as well!
It seems you have similar feelings towards the ninjas that I have. I think how and when we got each ninja affects a lot of people’s feelings towards them. Example - ninjas from first game top tier, 2nd game 2nd tier, 3rd game 3rd tier, and so on. Earlier characters naturally have a more classic feeling toward them
So true!
Bro you literally had the final tiers up there for like 2 secs.
Do you wanna stare at a screenshot for 10 seconds at a time?
awesome list but you forgot Hydro
Oh right…he’s in S+ tier
@@FAiRWAYx 🤣
Lakquisha! I know you in here!! Lakquisha!
I personally in every franchise bond with one random character. In mortal Kombat its Reptile and I don't know why I like him so much
Reptile is dope
I think the list should be named as “main staples or not”. In all seriousness, you can’t have a complete MK roaster without Scorpion or Sub Zero but there are at least 2 ninjas who have potential of being a permanent staple, those would be Smoke and Reptile for me. I wouldn’t mind if characters like Ermac or Tremor become dlc but they definitely need a make an impact on their inclusion other than being a powerful villain; so far Ermac has that potential of becoming a prominent character in MK 1 as the fan theory that King Jerrod resides inside Ermac has been confirmed. As for Chameleon, he’s in obscurity limbo so NRS will have to carefully consider how to revive him.
I was VERY close to putting Smoke in S Tier. I think he's more important and fleshed out than I gave him credit for.
Not noob saibot? I don’t think he did for years and maybe still doesn’t. But I do believe the potential is there now with more and more people separating Bi-Han and Kuai Liang, and Bi-Han being really popular again. I think it could depend on the new movie coming out and what Noob’s role will be, how it impacts the character overall
@@International_man_of_mystery Noob was also in contention for S tier, but I found it hard to justify.
@@International_man_of_mystery Noob is a tricky one because he's very much well liked but his existence means that Bi Han has to be dead. If he's given a new reintroduction, my personal opinion would be that be to combine the entity that used Smoke as a vessel, Enemra, and whatever force was used to make Noob's shadow into once character. It would still be Noob Saibot, give a call back to the Noob Smoke team from Deception, and separate its relationship with Bi Han.
My favorite costume is the cryomancer tundra sub-zero
I can’t give Reptile an S tier rating. He, like Baraka, never did anything of consequence in any of the games, save for when he was transformed into Onaga. Also, I think all of his looks post MK3 have been terrible, his latest being the worst by turning him into a fat giant salamander looking thing. Really like the character and his move set, it’s everything else that’s the problem for me.
The Reptile point is fair, and he’s had some low points, but I just think him being the OG secret character opened up so many possibilities. Also, not mentioned in the video, but Liu vs. Reptile in the movie is HYPE.
Bros angry that a character named reptile looks like an actual reptile
Ok fare point agree to disagree
Smoke better than reptile
Brother, he was the FIRST SECRET CHARACTER (I’m really biased I love reptile). Also, he was crazy in UMK3 and was so cool they brought him back for an MK1 character . Also, his niche as a hard-zoner with combo tools has semi-consistently helped define the meta in some games. This is especially cool because in a lot of games he isn’t even a top tier, he just makes sure to fill a hole no other character can
Tremor should buddy with Bane if they do an MK/DC cross over xD
Those hairy pits in mk3 ❤️
I love the ninjas!! I wish they would leave their appearance alone. The original simple look is the best. Yes, even if there are 10 of them. I think they should all be simplified to look as they used to 😁
Always loved Smoke.
"feel free to roast me in the comments" nah this video was too easy to consume while editing my own video and was enjoyable background noise ( I promise that's a compliment) earned a sub.
"Scorpion never had a bad costume" Infrared Scorpion and MK 4 alt: Am I a joke to you?
I try to put Infrared Scorpion out of my head
I was pissed when they turned rain into a wizard in the newest mk , he was my favorite ninja
Noob saibot was always my favorite character to play with
Honestly I think noob is one of the best characters in the franchise and got better later in the games. I think in MK 11 is where he shined the best, his move set is more fleshed out, and his outfit in 11 has a very otherworldly assassin feel. (kinda like the people at N.R thought, hey what would a ring wraith look like as a ninja?) Scorpion, Subzero, and Noob sit S tier for me. These three have been a big part of the MK franchise and stories are so interweaved its hard to talk about one without the other. Smoke and reptile would both be in A tier for me. Ermac and Rain B Tier Tremor in C Tier and Chameleon in D tier. which from b to d tiers my biggest problem is there's not really alot done alot with these characters as they're could be which is a shame.